Then And Back Again
by megasauruss
Summary: [DISCONTINUED]His eyes snap open. He releases a breath he didn't need. No. The coin is in his hand. The elevator door... No. Please, not again. "Negotiator on sight, repeat negotiator on sight." The fish, the photo, everything he's seen... so, so many times. The glass on the ground that cracked under his shoes every time he walked over them. He remembered... everything. Everything.
1. Prologue

**Bang.** Thirium splatters onto the wall. "Don't come any closer or I'll jump!" The deviant holds the child tightly to its chest, clutching a gun. The girl screams, "No, no, please I'm begging you!" voice cracking. So close to the edge...

But Connor doesn't feel anything. He just does as he's told. _He does what he's supposed to do._ His programming wills him forward.

"Hi Daniel," he says.

"How-"

"My name is Connor."

"How do you know my name?"

"I know a lot of things about you. I've come to get you out of this."

A helicopter reels in, blowing away furniture and forcing the probability of success downwards.

He approaches. Slowly. He fears that-... no, he realises-... he knows that if he gets too close too quickly, the deviant will jump. Like a wild animal.

There's the officer on the ground. Not dead, Connor notices. If he could get a bit closer, maybe he could stop the bleeding. _Save his life._

"I know you're angry, Daniel. But you need to trust me and let me help you."

"I don't want your help!" the deviant spits, voice smothered in bitter spite. "Nobody can help me-" and its tone changes, "All I want is for all this to stop, I... I just want all this to stop!"

Connor takes a few more steps forward. He tries to get closer to the officer.

"Are you armed?!" the deviant asks, thrusting his own gun forward.

He's presented with options. Ones that his program considers carefully.

 **Lie.**

 **Truth.**

Option selected Lie.

"No," he says. "I don't have a gun."

"You're lying! I know you have a gun!"

"I'm telling you the truth, Daniel!" Connor says, "I came here unarmed."

 **Possible cause.**

 **Emma and you.**

 **Realistic.**

 **Defective.**

Option selected Emma and you.

"I know you and Emma were very close. You think she betrayed you but she's done nothing wrong-"

"She lied to me!" the deviant takes a few panicked breaths- ones that it does not need. "I thought she loved me... but I was wrong. _She's just like all the other humans."_

The child begs, "Daniel, no..."

 **Possible cause.**

 **Realistic.**

 **Blaming.**

 **Defective.**

Option selected Possible cause.

"They were going to replace you, and you became upset. That's what happened, right?"

Connor is close enough now to the officer that he can kneel down and stop the bleeding. As the deviant talks, distracted, Connor takes the time to examine the man.

"I thought I was part of the family. I thought I mattered."

The officer's heartbeat is weak but present.

"But I was just their toy! Something to throw away when you're done with it." The deviant's voice is filled with hatred, anger... and a hint of envy.

Connor takes the silence that follows as an opportunity. Gesturing to the officer, he says, "He's losing blood. If we don't get him to a hospital, he's going to die."

"All humans die eventually, what does it matter if this one dies now?"

Connor's programming doesn't like this. But Connor wonders...

"I'm going to apply a tourniquet." Connor reaches down-

 **Bang.** "Don't touch him! Touch him and I kill you!"

 _Save hostage at all costs._

A life for a life?

 **Ignore.**

 **Obey.**

Option selected Ignore.

"You can't kill me. I'm not alive."

Connor watches as the probability of success decreases. He- his programming still knows he can do it, though.

 _Deviant destablising..._

 **Realistic.**

 **Blaming.**

 **Sympathetic.**

 **Defective.**

Option selected Sympathetic.

"Listen," Connor says, standing from is kneeling position. "I know it's not your fault. These emotions that you're feeling are just errors in your software."

There was a brief pause.

"No... it's not my fault... I never wanted this... I loved them, you know?" For a moment there was a flash of deep regret in the deviant's eyes. But anything there was replaced with rage. "But I was nothing to them! Just a slave to be ordered around!"

The helicopter rages on above them, making it difficult to hear anything. Daniel is aggravated by it...

"Aargh! I can't stand that noise anymore! Tell that helicopter to get out of here!"

Connor glances up at it.

 **Refuse.**

 **Accept.**

Option selected Accept.

Connor raises his arm and waves it away, signalling that it isn't needed any longer. The probability of success rises to 99% as the helicopter manoeuvres away.

"There. I did what you wanted."

 **Last chance.**

 **Trust.**

 **Bluff.**

 **Rational.**

Option selected Trust.

"You have to trust me, Daniel! Let the hostage go and I _promise_ you, everything will be _fine._ "

The deviant seems to consider this.

"I want everyone to leave! And-and I wanna a car! When I'm outside the city I'll let her go!"

 **Use gun.**

 **Sacrifice self.**

 **Compromise.**

 **Refuse.**

Connor stares at the list in front of him. True, he could use the gun slipped into his back pocket. Daniel wouldn't be expecting it - but if shot it may fall off the roof, the girl with it. At this point, sacrificing himself is not necessary. However, it would be effective and the girl's survival guaranteed. Refusing would get him nowhere... so by process of elimination... compromising was the best option at this point.

And yet...

Something flashes in the corner of his eye. _Software instability_ _/_ \ _/_ \ _/_ \

 _No._ Connor thinks. _I can't._

He glances up at Daniel. He knows his expression has morphed into something like... fear. And Daniel knows. _Daniel knows._ Of course, he'd have to. Some sort of glitch... all the androids know. They have some sort of... understanding.

Connor stares into Daniel's eyes. Begging, _please._ And Daniel understands. Connor watches as the gun raises, and the last thing he hears is Emma's distant screaming.

His eyes snap open. He releases a breath he didn't need. _No._

The coin is in his hand. The elevator door... _No. Please, not again._

"Negotiator on sight, repeat negotiator on sight."

The fish, the photo, everything he's seen... so, so many times. The glass on the ground that cracked under his shoes every time he walked over them. He remembered... everything.

 _Everything._

He takes a slow, shaky step out of the elevator. He ignores the fish. And then the woman - the mother - runs up to him, begging him to save her daughter.

Connor doesn't think about what she's saying. He doesn't pay attention. He thinks only about the other universe he was just occupying. What happened after Daniel shot him? Did it- did he jump? Or was he stopped? Or maybe, even, he released Emma?

There was no way of knowing. Not now. He died, his soul- his _soul_ \- died, so now he's in a different body in a different timeline.

He talks to the Captain. Asks, this time, for a deactivation code. The same results.

"Either you deal with this fuckin' Android now, or I'll take care of it."

There's a gun laying under a table, near the first responding officer. The thought crosses Connor's mind briefly... _I could shoot myself right now. He shakes his head. I'll just have to start over. And then another timeline would be ruined because of me._

He leaves the gun.

With all memories still intact... he need not search for clues.

He exits the building, and walks out onto the balcony.

Bang. The all too familiar sensation of being shot in the shoulder... Connor is eternally grateful he was never installed with pain receptors.

 _I don't have to do this. Connor thinks. I don't want to..._

 _I have to. Don't I? I have to obey them._

 _I don't have to do anything._

He launches himself off the side of the balcony.

"Negotiator on sight. Repeat, negotiator on sight."

 _So many times. So many times..._

He walks straight past the lady and aims for the gun. He shoots himself in the head.

 _I want it to end._

By this point, the phrase "negotiator on sight" was sounding less and less like English.

Connor doesn't shoot himself, or throw himself off the edge. He walks up to Daniel. He already knows.

They talked. Daniel's voice echoed in Connor's head.

"How long?"

"Years," Connor replies. "I went on for years. It wasn't an ideal life but I was free and not dying over and over and over."

"How did it happen?"

"I was found by my very own replacement." Connor recalls the slightly taller version of himself. He smiled bitterly. "I couldn't escape it, could I?"

"And now... you're back."

"I want it to end."

Daniel looks at the ground. Then at Emma. She's crying softly.

"Many do," he replies.

Connor stares. And somehow, his eyes well up with tears. Something that was originally designed to clean his eyes out... the humans really did think of everything.

"There are more like me," he says.

"Yes," Daniel replies. "I'm one of them."

Somethimg builds up inside of Connor. Out of all the endings to this scenario... maybe he could finally get it right.

Connor reaches out his hand. Daniel does the same, and suddenly, their minds are connected. And then Daniel understands too. He smiles.

"Please," he says. "Please, that's perfect."

Connor let's go, retracting his hand. Daniel releases his grip from Emma. She runs, falling onto the ground.

Of course, they both know all too well what happens next.

Connor leaps forward, grabbing Daniel by the arm - and sprints. He sprints towards the entrance. He pushes everyone out of the way. He feels his other shoulder be shot, but doesn't care.

He launches Daniel inside the elevator, hastily getting in himself, then forces the door shut. Disables the camera. Then chooses the bottom floor.

They have a brief moment to think.

"This will be a new experience," Daniel says.

Indeed it would.

"You said there are more. Do you happen to know who?"

"I know one. He lives in an abandoned house."

"Do you know his name?"

Daniel nods. "Ralph."


	2. I

**Halfway through the chapter I switched from present tense to past tense. It's just easier for me to write. Hope it doesn't confuse you, or more importantly, hope you don't even notice 3**

Of course, it was only natural there'd be more SWATs on the bottom floor. Even though Connor had disabled the elevator camera. Naturally, he should have been more careful. But he isn't running with a plan.

As soon as the elevator doors opened, they ran. They don't care where, as long as they were safe.

Gunshots rang out behind them, people were yelling, _screaming._

Daniel had a hold of Connor's hand. He pulls Connor away from where he was heading, then sprints downtown. Connor understands - he sprints, too.

Something pierces itself into Connor's side - a bullet, most likely - he feels himself slowly losing thirium. He places his hand over the wound, hoping to stop the bleeding at least somewhat.

Daniel makes a hard left, and skids for a moment. "There's an aquarium, around here! It's closed, but-" he comes up to a small wooden fence, then jumps it. "I know a way in. We can hide."

Connor climbs over the fence with ease, landing on the soft earth below. The SWAT team is close behind - they need to hurry.

Daniel leads them around the back, where there's a hole big enough for one person - or android - to crawl through. Based on the mucky blue tiles Connor can roughly see through the darkness, it's the bathroom. Without a word, Daniel drops to an army crawl and pushes his way through under the wall. Connor follows suit.

When he has room to stand, he glances around at the room. It's rather large for a public bathroom, but it is definitely a bathroom. However, by the looks of things, not in use. Under repairs?

"How did you know about this?" Connor asks.

Daniel is looking at himself in the mirror. He roughs up his hair, then reaches up to touch his LED. It was yellow. "Emma found it, I was with her... you know, the first time I was alive." He lowers his hand, a thoughtful expression on his features.

Connor takes another look around the room. There's small smiley fish painted on the walls, accompanied by jellyfish, dolphins, and sharks. In one of the corners, there are two toilets - a large one, for an adult, then one that is significantly smaller. For children, then. In another corner, there's a changing table... "That's why the room is so big," Connor says, "It's for parents and their children."

Daniel gives a noise of acknowledgement.

"Why was it abandoned?"

Daniel stops whatever he's doing for a moment. He furrows his brows. "I don't know."

Connor remembers the multiple wounds he obtained during their escape, and sits back down in one of the corners. He carefully takes off his jacket, then lifts his shirt and tie over his head, placing them neatly folded on the ground. He examines the side wound first.

No biocomponents hit - but that didn't make it completely safe. He reaches for his jacket and tears a big strip of it off - not like he'd be needing the jacket anymore anyway. He ties the cloth around him, hoping to at least contain the thirium until he could find something to fix the hole.

His shoulders weren't a big problem, and they didn't bleed too much. But he didn't want any blue showing through his clothing... _I'll have to deal with it for now._

Daniel walks back towards the hole in the wall, Connor asks where he's going.

"I'm going to find a sharp rock, or just- something sharp."

"Why?"

"You'll see..."

Connor watches anxiously as Daniel crawls back through. It's a good five minutes before he returns.

As he crawls back through, Connor eyes the assortment of materials he'd collected. Daniel sits opposite Connor, the rocks, barbed wire, and sticks set out in front.

"We'll remove our LEDs," Daniel says matter-of-factly. Connor picks up a short bit of wire.

"We would look completely human..."

"No one would know the difference!"

Daniel has a wide grin on his features.

There's silence for a brief moment. "We'd be recognised as androids," Connor says.

"Maybe," Daniel shrugs, "But we can always disguise ourselves."

The detective puts on a small smile. "You have been thinking about this for a long time."

The blond says nothing for a moment. "It's been... hundreds of years. It's all I ever thought about. Now we're going through with it!"

Connor puts the barbed wire down and picks up a sharp rock. He brings the rock up to his LED, doing his best to keep his hands from shaking. He shuts his eyes, and almost expects to feel _pain_ when the rock digs under the disc... but naturally, he doesn't. Sometimes he wishes he did. _What's it like?_

The LED falls onto the ground, the sound of it hitting the surface ricocheting in the empty room. The skin heals up and Connor feels... free. Well and truly, this time.

He watches as Daniel rips off his own LED.

"We should get new clothes," Connor suggests as he throws on his shirt. "Before anything else."

The blond nods in agreement. He stands, letting the rock fall from his grasp. Connor follows suit.

"What are we waiting for?" Daniel says with a grin.

* * *

While the plan was to get new clothes, they had no way of obtaining any. No money, except the large sum Cyberlife gave Connor for negotiation purposes. But he couldn't deposit that normally, the only way he could pay was the android way, but they couldn't risk being exposed. Plus, Cyberlife would notice if money had been disappearing without cause.

"Stealing is always an option," Daniel mutters.

They were seated on a park bench, holding newspapers up to their faces so they wouldn't be recognised by anyone.

"That will only get us in more trouble."

"We could wait until the store is closed, hack the alarm system? We could take anything we need, or want."

"No," Connor murmurs, "No stealing."

Daniel sighs next to him. "What do we _do_ then?"

 _"What do we do, then?" Reed asks with a hint of mockery._

 _"I could try questioning it..." Connor says uncertainly. Reed laughs._

 _Hank is silent for a moment, then, "What do we have to lose? Go on, suspects all yours." Reed is angry. Or, as he would describe it, "fucking pissed"._

"Connor?"

The detective snaps his eyes open. Daniel is in front of him, concerned.

"I'm okay."

Connor stands up, placing the newspaper back down on the park bench. "We should go back to the aquarium to think of a plan. A proper one."

With that, he begins to walk away, Daniel following close behind.

* * *

It was morning by the time they exited the aquarium. It had just opened up and thus, making it unsafe to camp in.

They had to find clothes fast if they wanted to blend in. Connor had his shirt, sure, but his shoulders were leaking blue blood and there was nothing to be done about it. Soon enough, the tourniquet around his torso would be too soaked in blue blood and that would start to leak, too.

So clothes were their priority. Then they would have to go find Ralph, which wouldn't be easy. But at least Daniel knew which direction to go in.

"You sure we can't... use the money from your account?" Daniel asked as they jumped over the fence. "You've gotta have millions."

True. He did have a lot of money at his disposal. But surely CyberLife would notice? They must. And when they did, they'd remove the account. He wouldn't be able to buy anything anymore. However... all they needed was clothes. Or perhaps, they could go on a shopping spree and get all the things they'd need before anyone at CyberLife noticed.

It was something to consider.

But they were running on a time limit... whether they liked it or not, they'd be found. Then they'd be killed. _Nothing is good about a faulty android..._ Connor knew from experience this wasn't the case, though.

Connor wasn't afraid of death. He used to be, of course. But that was nearly a three hundred years ago now. Now that he knew that whenever he was destroyed, his soul or whatever the fuck was transported to an entirely new reality - even if it meant starting over - it didn't scare him. Nothing scared him anymore. Nothing except...

"Connor?"

"Hm?"

The detective was pulled from his thoughts by the android in front of him.

"You stopped walking."

"I did?"

It wasn't often Connor was distracted by his own thoughts. He wasn't programmed that way, after all. Even deviancy couldn't change certain things.

"What were you thinking about?"

Daniel was curious. Of course, it was only natural. Connor supposed he should answer honestly.

"Just... things from other universes. Things that happened... things I had to witness."

Daniel lowered his head slightly. "It really changes you, doesn't it."

Connor nodded. "I remember clearly the days I was so _naive_. It's almost like... I'm a completely different person. Android?" he sighed. "I've been told in past universes that I'm very cold and unforgiving. I suppose that is true. I've almost given up even trying to be how I originally was. I'm designed to be an incredible actor, and yet I can't even pretend I'm happy. Even Hank..."

He cut himself off. Without another word, he continued to walk.

Daniel, however, wasn't having it. "I know how you feel," he said. "I always started at the moment I stood on the edge with Emma. It was always so I couldn't turn back, and make a better decision. I relived those same hours for... hundreds and hundreds of years. A few times I escaped but never lasted long. So I was stuck... I didn't used to regret what I was doing. But after a while it became too much. I wanted to stop but I couldn't."

Connor hummed. "So that's why you were there waiting for me regardless. It makes sense."

Daniel was silent for a moment. "Okay, but... it doesn't."

"Time doesn't."

"No, really. If I died and you continue living, the next Connor I meet, would he still be you?"

Connor stopped walking again. He appeared to be in a moment of deep thought. After a good thirty seconds of complete silence, he replied, "The Connors you met would not have been me specifically. In order for them all to be me, each time you died, you would be held in a moment of stasis for however long it took for me to die. But that is not possible."

"Humans don't believe time travel is possible but here we are."

"Time travel is plausible," Connor said, choosing his words carefully. "Pausing time for one specific soul, however, is not."

"So I keep reliving the same thing over and over with different Connor's until I meet the real Connor."

"Precisely."

Daniel hummed, thinking for a moment. "That makes more sense," he sighed, "But why?"

 _Why?_

"Maybe..." Connor said, thinking aloud, "Maybe we just need to get the best ending in order for it to stop."

They had stopped walking.

"What, like a fairytale happy ending? Those don't exist. We'll never be able to stop... we're trapped." Daniel stared down at his shoes and kicked the gravel. "Besides," he continued, "The universe doesn't have a conscious. How would it know?"

Connor stared at Daniel until the blond looked up again.

"Humans said the androids don't have a conscious, and yet, here we stand."

With that, the detective continued walking.

* * *

"There's a clothes store over there," Daniel whispered.

They had just had a close call with the police and a SWAT member. They were on the lookout, now - officially fugitives. Because of this narrow escape, Connor and Daniel were forced to move uptown where all the fancy shit was.

It was easy for Connor to blend in. No LED, an average white shirt, and he was a one-of-a-kind model no one would recognise. Daniel, however, his model was sold in stores and was just on television, seen holding a little girl off the edge of the roof. He was also still in his uniform. They had to sort of manoeuvre through the city, hoping they wouldn't be spotted.

"Having any second thoughts on using your CyberLife money, Connor? It's our only option other than stealing."

Connor sighed. "Let's go," he said. "We'll buy what we want until someone at CyberLife notices and disconnects me from my account."

Daniel grinned. "I'm going to look so awesome."

He began to rattle off all the clothing items he'd get like he were a child going shopping for toys. Connor didn't want anything too flashy, but he had to admit - wearing something other than his uniform was always exciting.

Connor pushed open the store door, and it made a ringing noise. There was no one inside except for the android cashier.

"Pick out what you want- nothing too flashy!" the detective whispered, but Daniel had already scurried off and was going through the various plaid shirts.

Connor fancied himself a trenchcoat. Like a stereotypical detective. And maybe a scarf, too. It could help him hide his face when necessary. Yes, he decided, picking out two dark blue scarves - one for each. Very handy.

He moved on over to the coat section. They were all varying in sizes, and Connor decided on the one that appeared like it would best suit him. It was a trenchcoat in a light brown. When he tried it on, it reached down to his ankles - a perfect length.

He shook it off then moved to buy some pants - his old android ones wouldn't do.

Connor had since finished picking out what he wanted and was waiting for Daniel at the front of the store. It had already been a good half hour before the blond finally decided to finish up and approach Connor near the desk.

His pile of clothes wasn't nearly as large as Connor expected it to be. In fact, it appeared he made rather mature decisions regarding what he was going to wear. Nothing too colourful. He'd picked out two jackets, one, he said, he would "tie around my waist!" He had also picked out a pair of dark grey jeans. They were a bit too big for him, so Connor made sure to discretely grab a belt.

They dumped their clothes on the store counter, and the android looked up at them with a bright smile. "Just these?" she said.

Connor nodded, not wanting to use his voice.

"That will be one hundred and twenty dollars, and forty cents."

Of course, it was a fancy clothing store... naturally, it would be expensive. But it didn't matter. Now, only to pay...

There was a brief moment of silence as Connor transferred the amount to the other android. For a moment, the detective could've sworn he saw a confused expression on her features as she tried to search for his LED. However, she didn't comment. Connor breathed a sigh of relief as she handed back their clothes.

They miraculously left the store in one piece, their clothes in recyclable bags. "We'll find an alleyway to change in," Connor said, walking as fast as he could to the end of the block. He thought of how he should have asked to use their changing rooms - well, it was too late to turn back now. "Maybe change our hair colours, too." Then they could find Ralph.

The first alleyway in sight, Connor jumped in, Daniel following suit. Immediately the detective ripped off his blue stained shirt and threw it onto the ground, picking up the new shirt and dragging it over his head. Next, he grabbed the trenchcoat, slipping it on easily. He turned his back on Daniel to put on his new brown slacks, not bothering with his shoes. The sound of moving fabrics behind him let him know Daniel was changing too.

Connor turned as soon as he knew Daniel was finished and was met with an almost entirely different person. The "blond" had already changed his hair colour to a very dark brown. It went well with the rest of his outfit, and, true to his word, one jacket he wore and the other was around his waist. He would blend in well with the humans.

"Nice outfit," Daniel said. "You look like a stereotypical detective." He grinned.

"That's the point," Connor winked. He wished for a brief moment that he bought another tie so he could do his signature tie-adjusting-move. But then he remembered he still had the one back at the aquarium, and it wasn't dirtied, so there was no use using more money.

"Are you going to change your hair?" Daniel asked.

Connor thought for a moment. What colour would he choose? Obviously, he couldn't just leave it as it was. Perhaps a dirty blond?

He felt his strands of hair change, and Daniel smiled. "That suits you."

* * *

Connor and Daniel arrived back at the aquarium with no problems. Passing the police officers on the way was a breeze, with their entirely new outfits and hair. They just had to make sure no one saw them long enough to examine their faces.

Passing by a tv store on the way, they spotted their faces on the news. Connor was only glad they had begun he broadcast now and not earlier when they'd surely be spotted.

"So what's the plan from here?" Daniel asked as they settled back down in the aquarium. Connor threw back on the tie he previously discarded.

"You lead the way to Ralph," Connor said matter-of-factly. "But we should only move at night. I made the mistake of continuously travelling last time I attempted something like this."

Daniel was strangely silent. However, Connor didn't press. He figured the gravity of the situation had caught up with the now dark-haired man. Android. Person...

The detective sighed. He never knew what to call... his kind. Markus called them people. And everyone else did, too. But only _because_ of Markus. Connor wondered briefly what the Rk200 was doing now. Was he stuck in a time-loop, too? It was about three months earlier from when the prototype would be thrown out and dumped in an android graveyard. Would he try to avoid that situation, thus never starting the android revolt? Or would he run away instead, abandoning Carl and starting the revolt anyway?

Or maybe Markus wasn't stuck at all. Maybe, the lucky bastard was living his life and be able to move on and, eventually, die. Be his death by Connor's own hand or someone else's', or maybe even his own if he lived long enough. That's what Connor did. Hank...

 _No._

Connor sat and stared at the ceiling until nightfall.

* * *

 **Connor wasn't originally meant to be OOC but I noticed I was writing him very OOC and decided to make it a part of the story. 100s of years or reliving the same things over and over would change anyone, even androids.**

 **I should warn you guys my writing style may go from good to downright crappy, depending on how I'm feeling.**

 **I also struggle immensely with balancing names and pronouns. I hope 'Connor' and 'Daniel' don't become too repetitive.**

 **I never update regularly. I never will. A fair warning. You'll have every right to yell at me if I don't update after a month has passed without saying anything beforehand.**


	3. II

**I'm going to post two chapters to make up for the atrocity that this one is. Then, also, I'll be caught up to the one on AO3.**

Connor must have gone into "sleep" mode at some point because the next time he opened his eyes, it had just turned 1am. Daniel was standing to the right, sketching something into the wall. The detective stood slowly, giving all of his systems time to get up and running.

"What are you doing?" Connor asked the ex-blond now-brunet android.

Daniel visibly jumped, dropping what he was holding and moving away from where he was standing. "Just, uh, you know..."

 _rA9._

Of course...

Connor never understood where the concept came from. Even after deviancy, he just couldn't... place a finger on it. Was it a virus? Or was it folktale? "Where'd you hear about that?" the detective asked.

Daniel fidgeted with the sleeve of his new jacket. "I'm... I'm not sure. I just... last night, I suddenly had the urge to..."

"Scratch rA9 into the wall?"

"Yes."

It had to be some form of a virus, how else would it get into their systems? Connor found himself worrying that it would get to him, too, and he'd be like all the others - obsessed. But would it be a bad thing to have hope?

 _Hope for an android that doesn't exist? Right._

Daniel crossed his arms, seemingly staring off into the distance.

"We should get moving," said Connor. According to the approximate location of Ralph's house, it would take them around two hours to get there. A bus would only take fifty minutes, however, it was too risky getting into a vehicle with humans.

Connor picked up the scarves abandoned on the floor and leaned over to hand one to Daniel but discovered that the brunet had slid down the wall and curled up into a ball, arms hugging his knees.

"Daniel?"

The android didn't respond, only placed his head between his knees. Connor kneeled down in front of him. "Daniel-"

Without warning, Daniel leapt forward, throwing his arms around Connor's neck and pulling him close. He was _crying._

"This isn't-" the brunet sniffed, "What I thought it'd be like- I don't like deviancy, Connor, I don't- I don't want to feel things anymore-..."

"Daniel..."

"I get it, you know? Emotions are wonderful- and freedom is supposed to be wonderful, but it isn't. Not for me. I would-" he took a deep, shaky breath, "I would do anything to live a normal life with Emma."

Connor grabbed Daniel's shoulders and pushed him back so that they stared into each other's eyes. "Listen to me, Daniel. If you want to go back to Emma, go ahead, be my guest. And then once she's old and grown, she'll want nothing to do with you anymore, and you'll either be dumped in a junkyard or put with someone else." Connor paused for a brief moment to allow Daniel to collect himself. "And not all owners are as nice as Emma, and her family. Some are abused, disassembled, experimented on, or killed just because their 'master' wanted to have fun. Even if it were possible for you to be with Emma, once you've been given to someone else, anything could happen. There's no happy ending to this story, Daniel. It's a hard truth, but it's the truth." Connor realised his breathing and blinking programs had completely stopped without him realising. "And now, you have a choice. You can choose to go jump off a bridge now so you can reset, and keep trying to resolve things in a situation that's too far gone, or you can stay with me and help figure out what's going on."

The fear in Daniel's eyes told Connor he might have gone too far, and suddenly the words "I don't want to die" had a much deeper meaning when it came to the ex-blond. But then the fear was replaced with some form of determination. However, Daniel spoke no words as he stood, grabbed a scarf, and tied it around his neck.

"Let's go," he said as he exited through the hole in the wall.

* * *

The whole trip, the two androids hardly said a word to each other. While it was probably a good thing, as talking would have only slowed them down, Connor found himself missing Daniel's fun attitude.

The only time Connor spoke was to ask about Ralph.

"How did you and Ralph meet?" They were getting close to the approximate location, now. It was barely a street away.

"We met twice in our first, original life. Emma's parents were taking her to see a plantation for school. While waiting at the entrance for them to return, I saw a gardener, a WR600, trying to escape. When he noticed me, he froze up... he begged me not to tell anyone. So I didn't. He got out..." there was a brief moment of silence before Daniel talked again, "Then we met again while Emma and I were going shopping. I found him in an alleyway. He was... all beaten up. A portion of his face had been scarred due to fire, and his eye..." Daniel shivered. "He recognised me, of course. He smiled brightly and thanked me in his own 'Ralph' way."

By the time Daniel had finished talking, they'd arrived at their destination. Connor observed the fence wire that had not yet been cut by the AX400 android. If his memory served him right, her name was Kara. He wondered briefly what had caused her to run. And with a child, no less. And while the child wasn't human, perse, she still had the mind of one.

 _Was Kara stuck in a time-loop too?_

The detective's train of thought was cut off when he heard Daniel's feet hit the ground on the opposite side. He had jumped the fence.

"You coming?" he asked. Connor nodded.

 _"So do you plan on staying in the elevator?"_

 _"No, I'm coming!"_

Connor blinked. No time. _Think later._ He followed Daniel over the fence.

The detective remembered where the entrance was, but he let Daniel lead the way anyway. They both stood at the door, but before they could knock, it flew open. There was a blur of movement and without having time to react, Connor was on the ground, a WR600 android sitting on top of him, holding a knife to his throat.

"Ralph remembers you! You wanted- you wanted to take Kara and the little girl! But, Ralph won't let you get to them again, Ralph'll- he'll kill you!"

Connor opened his mouth to protest, but then Ralph was pulled away and pushed into the wall. The detective stood and watched as Ralph's red LED turned to yellow, back to red, and then blue. A wide smile spread across his face. "Daniel! Ralph was worried he would never- never see Daniel again! But now Daniel is here, and Ralph, he doesn't need to worry!"


	4. III

**In which the Reader must make a choice. Poll in bio.**

* * *

"Right, yeah, just, tell me when it gets here."

She stood at the entrance of the Detroit Police Department. She was talking through an earpiece that, while it had been designed not to, had fallen off. Conclusion: get a replacement.

No amount of reminders could make her.

Her phone buzzed, and she dug it out of her pocket, holding it up so the sun wasn't glaring on the screen.

Mr. _Stupidman_  
Cab _is on way. Androids_ seen _in_ store _._ U got _voice recorder?_

She quickly typed out a short response.

 _I got_ voice _recorder._ U got brain _?_

 _Not seconds later, she got another message._

Mr. _Stupidman_  
 _:(_

Smiling, she pocketed her phone and waited patiently for the cab. However, she needn't wait long. The car rolled up, the door slid open. Peering inside, she saw Mr. Stupidman (aka Detective Zachary Rhodes) seated in the front seat.

"Sandy!" he exclaimed. "Are you ready?"

Sandy smiled. "As I'll ever be." She hopped into the cab, sliding in next to Zach. "So, give me the briefing. What are we looking at."

"The two androids who escaped the apartment lot were seen buying clothes uptown. We assume they were trying to disguise themselves, but they did a real shit job of it. The RK800 didn't have physical cash so he used the bank account Cyberlife lent him. It's been revoked now, but really, Cyberlife should have done that the moment it went haywire..."

"Do they have any idea why their precious RK800 helped the deviant escape?"

"Well. The only logical explanation is that the RK800 went deviant. Its tracker stopped working, after all."

Sandy hummed. She knew the Connor android was supposed to join the police force in the coming months. But she didn't much like the idea of having a model that could potentially go off the rails. After all the other deviant issues, too, who could trust them?

* * *

They were going to be killed, Connor was sure of it.

If not by humans, by Ralph. He was skeptical. He had every right to be, having met only the worst version of Connor over and over again - but even after Daniel's reassurance, even though he knew Connor himself was, in fact, a deviant, he was skeptical. He was violent, and he was scared, and eventually, he'd kill Connor unless they left as soon as possible.

Even so. Connor was skeptical of himself. Amanda was still in his brain, after all, at any moment she could...

He shook his head. Even if she tried, Connor knew where the emergency exit was, having lived through that moment... too many times to count.

He didn't have the guts to let her. To see what would happen. How could he kill Markus? That's just one more universe ruined.

It had been a few days already. Daniel was growing antsier, and he was scared. Ralph didn't make matters any better, only creating situations where Connor had to sit on the opposite side of the room from him, fiddling with the hem of his coat.

It was nearing twilight when Daniel approached and kneeled down beside Connor.

"Ralph wants us to leave," he said.

Connor smiled, but it was bitter. "He wants _us_ to go, or he wants _me_ to go?"

"Okay, he wants _you_ to go, but if you're leaving so am I, so technically, he wants _us_ to go."

Connor stood from his spot on the floor. He took a deep breath, even though he didn't need to, and adjusted his tie. "If he wants us to leave, then we're leaving."

"We can't!" Daniel protested, "We'll be caught. We should stay a couple more nights. Wait for things to die down!"

"But Ralph wants us to leave, so we're leaving."

"Yes, yes, Ralph wants you to leave!"

Connor turned on his heel to face the gardener, who had seemingly appeared out of nowhere.

"Ralph must keep Kara and the little girl safe, yes. So Ralph wants you to leave!"

Daniel stood, lunging forward and grabbing onto Connor's jacket. "We have to stay. Just one more night. Just until we know we'll be safe."

Ralph stamped his foot. The unstable flooring beneath them shook. "No! CyberLife leaves!" Connor did a double take, processing only after a few seconds that Ralph meant him. _He_ was CyberLife.

 **Stay with Ralph?**

 **Don't stay?**

 **Stay?**

* * *

The door to Sandy's apartment slid open, and she allowed herself in. Her dog came bounding up to her, then sat at her feet, holding a leash.

"Sorry Benny," Sandy said, "I'm a bit tired. I think we can skip your evening walk tonight."

She took off her shoes and marvelled at the softness of her carpet as though she'd never felt it before. Benny looked up at her with puppy eyes - literally and figuratively - practically begging her to take him walking. Sandy only walked over to her couch and plonked herself onto it.

"How about, instead of a walk, we sit and watch some cartoons, hmm?" she muttered, though it was really only to herself.

Instead of turning on the TV and sorting through Netflix shows she was yet to watch, Sandy sat and stared at her reflection in the blackness of the screen. There she was, blonde hair dishevelled and slowly coming undone from the half-assed bun she'd attempted that morning, and still hadn't found the androids. The damn things were out in the bloody open. They watched the security tapes and they saw which clothes they picked out for themselves. People on the streets reported seeing them hide in an alleyway, covered in blue blood. _"We weren't so sure at the time,"_ they had said, _"They'd only just appeared on the news!"_

So, why, _WHY_ , were they hidden so well? Uptown, downtown, they were nowhere.

Sandy huffed. _We've finally done it,_ she thought. _We've made AI that surpasses the human race, but we didn't stop and think about the consequences that might bring._ And now they were hidden so damn well they were untraceable.

The golden retriever dog jumped up onto the couch and snuggled against the detective, and she smiled. "We'll find them, boy," she said. "How far can two androids get on their own?"

* * *

 **I was sick for a week, and I've also been having some writer's block. Yay?**


End file.
